Country star Robert Mizzell will perform at the annual Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat Dance which will take place on Friday 2nd February.

The dance which will take place this year at the Allingham Arms Hotel in Bundoran is the flagship fundraising event of the volunteer crew and has been a staple of the annual event calendar for more than 40 years.

Award winning country music singer Robert Mizzell originally from Louisiana and now based in Ireland will perform on the night and is looking forward to playing the event “since I’ve moved to Ireland I’ve become very aware of the amazing work the volunteers of the RNLI do so selflessly. It is my great pleasure to play at their annual dance this year. I look forward to seeing many of the supporters of this great charity on the night’.

Event director Cormac McGurren is encouraging supporters to get their tickets early ‘tickets are just €15 and are on sale now from all crew members, The Allingham Arms, Bundoran Tourist Office, BMG Hardware Bundoran, O’Neill’s Next Door Off Licence Ballyshannon and on the door on the night.We’ll have the usual monster raffle with prizes kindly donated by numerous businesses in the Bundoran/Ballyshannon area as well as a main prize of a €400 voucher for BMG Hardware kindly donated by Irish Gap Year.’

The dance will take place from 10pm on Friday 2nd February and will be followed by a disco.

Proceeds from the dance fund the ongoing training of the volunteer crew based at Bundoran Lifeboat Station who are on call 24 hours a day 7 days a week serving the entire Donegal Bay area for marine emergencies.

It is with deep regret that the organising committee of the Bundoran Lifeboat Soapbox Race has taken the decision to cancel this Sunday’s re-scheduled event at Astoria Road. This has not been done lightly and was taken following an examination of several weather forecasts for the weekend; all of which point to rain on Sunday afternoon. Following the recent poor weather which hit the North West and the damage it inflicted, the committee feel it would be unwise to go-ahead with the event which is so dependent on a good forecast for its success. The safety and comfort of the volunteers, participants and spectators is of paramount importance.

The Bundoran Lifeboat Soapbox Race is a major fundraiser for the RNLI and to run it to the professional standard required, involves the securing of materials and services at a cost. The cancellation of the event at very short notice incurs a financial loss for the event as well as huge amount of disappointment to the participants.

With all of this in mind the Committee have taken the difficult but necessary decision not reschedule the event for this year.

The Committee would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused at this point and again to assure everyone involved that this decision was not taken lightly.

Bundoran RNLI is reminding anyone planning a trip to the coast this summer to be mindful of the potential dangers and particularly the hazardous rip currents that can quickly sweep you out to sea.The advice comes as the volunteer crew of Bundoran RNLI were this morning (Saturday 15 July) requested to launch to Tullan Strand in Bundoran following reports that there were several people in difficulty in the sea.

A group of footballers had been training on Tullan Strand and entered the water to cool down following their session. The strong currents at Tullan began to carry a number of them out to sea and into the rocks.

Concerned onlookers immediately called the Coast Guard and within minutes both the inshore lifeboat from Bundoran and the Sligo based Rescue 118 helicopter were at the scene.

Meanwhile, a group of quick thinking surfers, one of whom is crew member with Bundoran RNLI, entered the water on boards and helped the footballers to safety.

On arrival, the lifeboat ensured that all casualties were out of the water while Rescue 118 landed on Tullan Strand and also made sure that everyone was accounted for.

The lifeboat crew trained in first aid assisted eight of the players, some who were bruised and some who had swallowed sea water before ambulances arrived. A number of the casualties were taken to Sligo University Hospital as a precaution.

Following the incident, Bundoran RNLI helm James Cassidy reminded anyone planning a trip to the area of the potential dangers: ‘Thankfully everyone is safe this afternoon and we would like to wish the group well following what must have been a frightening experience. We would remind locals and visitors alike that Tullan Strand and particularly the area along the cliffs is notorious for rip currents and under currents and is really not suitable for swimming. Rips are strong currents running out to sea which can catch even the most experienced beachgoers out. They can take you from the shallows very quickly and leave you out of your depth. Bundoran’s main beach is supervised by lifeguards all summer long and provides the best option for safe, supervised swimming during the summer period.

‘Should you get caught in a rip, the best advice is to stay calm and don’t panic. If you can stand, wade. Don’t try to swim. If you have an inflatable or board, keep hold of it to help you float. Raise your hand and shout for help loudly. Don’t swim directly against the rip or you will get exhausted. Swim parallel to the beach until free of the rip, then make for shore.

Whilst on exercise to Mullaghmore this morning (Sunday 9thJuly), the volunteer crew of the Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat responded to a pan-pan emergency call from Malin Head Coast Guard at 11.40am. A five metre rib had been found at Malin Beg near Glencolmcille, County Donegal and one person was missing.

At around 12:15pm, the Bundoran Lifeboat began a shore search from Teelin towards Malin Beg Head.The Sligo based Rescue 118 helicopter was on scene at Malin Beg Head with the all-weather lifeboat from Arranmore also requested to launch. A shore crew from the Killybegs Coast Guard unit was also tasked.

Following notification from Rescue 118 that a casualty had been spotted in the water at Malin Mor, the lifeboat crew made their way to the scene and recovered a casualty just before 1pm.

The casualty was brought to Teelin Pier and transferred into the care of the emergency services where he was pronounced dead by a local doctor.The crew of the Bundoran Lifeboat sends its condolences to the family of the deceased.

With just days to go until the 6th annual Bundoran Lifeboat Soapbox Race, preparations are well underway by the volunteer crew of Bundoran RNLI to ensure that this year’s event is better than ever.

Local company Ward Automation will be vying to keep the perpetual cup in Bundoran again this Sunday 4th June as they go head to head with soapboxes from the locality and from across the country who travel to take part in this family friendly event and also to support the fundraising efforts of Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat.

The day will kick off around midday as we welcome members of the Dublin Longboard Crew who take advantage of the closed road to show off their skating skills while the soapbox race itself will start around 1:30pm. Music will be provided by iRadio’s Dave Duke who will mix the ultimate soundtrack for the day as soapbox is pitted against soapbox, team against team and business against business. The event will finish with the much anticipated €1000 ball race. Balls will be on sale for €5 right up to the end of the soapbox race. All the balls are then dumped down the hill and the first one through the funnel wins €1000! This prizemoney is kindly sponsored by local businesses.

Event director Cormac Mc Gurren says the crew are looking forward to the day ‘It’s our biggest fundraising event of the year – it takes a lot of organising but the end product is definitely worth it. It’s a really fun day for families to come and watch their friends or colleagues taking part and to see who will ultimately lift the perpetual cup. We would like to thank everyone in advance for their continued support, our sponsors, our ball sellers and Donegal County Council for their assistance with the road closure.’

For those unable to be there on the day, the event will be broadcast live on the Bundoran Lifeboat Station facebook page. Soapboxes may be entered on the day or in advance online on www.bundoranlifeboatsoapboxrace.com.

On Sunday afternoon, May 28th, the volunteer crew of Bundoran RNLI lifeboat was requested to assist a rib with four persons on board which had broken down off Malinbeg, close to Rathlin O’Beirne Island.The alarm was raised around 3:45pm by a person on the land who called the Coast Guard at Malin Head. The Bundoran lifeboat crew was requested to launch shortly afterwards with the Killybegs Coast Guard crew also tasked. On arrival at the scene, the crew of the Killybegs Coast Guard had taken the rib with its four crew members under tow to Teelin Harbour. The Bundoran Lifeboat accompanied both vessels to Teelin and then returned to Bundoran arriving around 5:45pm.

The volunteer crew of Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat were requested to launch this afternoon (Sunday 16 April 2017) to assist a dive boat with 4 persons on board, which had broken down.

The alarm was raised around 1:50pm with Malin Head Coast Guard who immediately requested the launch of the Bundoran Lifeboat and also tasked the Killybegs Coast Guard Rib.

The Bundoran Lifeboat launched at 2pm to the dive boat which was around a mile north of Bullockmore, (west of St John’s Point). The Killybegs Coast Guard rib took the dive boat under tow to Killybegs Harbour with the Bundoran Lifeboat accompanying both vessels.

On returning to the station around 90 minutes later, Volunteer Lifeboat Crew member with Bundoran RNLI Richard Gillespie said ‘the people on board the dive boat were absolutely correct to call the Coast Guard and have ourselves and Killybegs launched. While they were in no immediate danger, the longer they left the call, the more chances there were of something going wrong. We would always encourage boat users to contact the Coast Guard on the first sign of a problem so we can be there to help sooner rather than later.’

The Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat remains on call 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. In case of emergency call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coast Guard.

In advance of the planned surface search tomorrow (Saturday 8 April) for the missing crew of Rescue 116 the RNLI will assist the Irish Coast Guard and Naval Service with coordinating a large sea area search from Donegal to Mayo. This follows a request from local fishing organisations.

RNLI lifeboats from Ballyglass, Achill, Sligo, Bundoran and Arranmore, along with Killybegs and Killala Coast Guard, will be on scene for the day and will keep in communication with all vessels. The RNLI wishes to join with the Coast Guard in stressing the importance of safety for every person taking part in the search. Each individual should be wearing a personal floatation device and have access to a working VHF for communications.

While engaged in the search the RNLI lifeboats will remain on call and available for search and rescue operations. Should an RNLI lifeboat need to respond to an emergency elsewhere a designated deputy vessel will be appointed.

Commenting on the planned search RNLI Lifesaving Manager Gareth Morrison said, ‘Since the loss of Rescue 116 our lifeboat crews from Ballyglass and Achill, later joined by Arranmore, Sligo and Bundoran have spent a huge number of hours out searching. This has been in conjunction with our colleagues in the Coast Guard, Naval Service, Civil Defence and on local vessels. Most of our lifeboat crew are volunteers who have left families and jobs to engage in the search. I want to take this opportunity to thank all the RNLI lifeboat crews, station personnel and wider communities who have taken part.’

‘With everyone involved in the search on Saturday staying vigilant and safe and following the directions from the on scene coordinators we will cover a huge area safely. We also ask that people continue to keep a lookout for any debris and report findings to the Coast Guard.’

He concluded, ‘Our thoughts remain with the families and colleagues of the crew of Rescue 116 ’

​The management and crew of Bundoran RNLI are deeply saddened by today’s tragic events. We have a very close working relationship with the Irish Coast Guard helicopter based at Sligo and train regularly with them. We send our condolences to the family and colleagues of Captain Dara Fitzpatrick and keep the other missing crew members in our thoughts at this difficult time. As a gesture of respect, we will be lowering the flag at our station to half mast.